They've increased security. They've cracked down on a policy requiring students to carry school IDs. Monday, they met with concerned parents.

But of all the things they've done to deal with the trouble, one thing was most impressive: They actually admitted they have a problem.

"If there's gang activity in the town of Manchester there's going to be gang activity at Manchester High School," Principal Kevin O'Donnell told a television reporter."We are a microcosm of Manchester."

If you wonder why this is such a big deal, let me tell you that I could count on one hand when school and police officials faced with a similar crisis actually admit to it. They deny, they spin, they do just about everything but tell the truth.

Case in point: When an internal Hartford police department memo last year painted a frightening picture of gangs in the city and schools. School and police officials went into denial overload: Gangs, what gangs?

Clearly, Manchester High has some work ahead of them. But stepping up and telling that truth is about as good of a start as anyone could hope for.

Officially, Giles was sentenced to six months, suspended, and a one-year conditional discharge on charges of attempted fourth-degree larceny by extortion and conspiracy to commit fourth-degree larceny by extortion. He also has to make a $500 donation to the crime victim's compensation fund.

But the reality boils down to this: Another free pass for a man who's miraculously managed never to be held accountable for his sketchy behavior, and no-bid contracts.

Wonder how former Mayor Eddie Perez, who was sentenced to three years in June, is feeling about that?

You've probably seen, or heard, the public service announcement. It opens with a pleasant holiday jingle, and what looks to be some festive Christmas lights. And then comes a the ubiquitous state police spokesperson Lt. Paul Vance delivering this stern message:

"Nothing shatters the holidays faster than a car crash. The state and local police are cracking down on speeding, unbuckled drivers and drunk driving this season.""We will stop you," Vance warns over an image of a tombstone, "before you put an end to your holiday or someone else's."

Unless, of course, you're a cop in Windsor Locks or Bristol these days. And then, well, the tough guy bit makes way for a kinder, gentler approach.

The 2007 Cheshire murders put a much-needed spotlight on the state's parole system. After such a heinous crime, many demanded reforms. Outgoing Gov. M. Jodi Rell instituted a four-month ban on parole for violent criminals. Few on the outside complained. For all many shaken by the crime cared, inmates could rot in prison forever.

Completely understandable, said Eric Crawford, a parole board member who recently escorted me to the Hartford parole offices. But the reality is that most parolees aren't Steven Hayes, who was recently sentenced to death. Or his accomplice, Joshua Komisarjevsky, who is awaiting trial for the murders.

Most, Crawford said, are like many of the men who sat in a cramped Sheldon Street waiting room -- non-violent offenders in need of treatment programs and jobs. Men like Rafael Merced, who was visibly frustrated at his inability to find a job to support his wife and two children.

The economy has hit everyone hard, Crawford said. But for a population who already had difficulty finding employment, it's making their job search - and chances at success --- even more challenging. Pair that with community programs being underfunded or cut, and there is a need to take a long, hard look at the reality men and women leaving prison are facing.

In an effort to start that conversation, Hartford's 5th District Democratic town committee is holding an information session Saturday for ex-offenders and their families about parole, pardons and re-entry.

All are welcome. And considering our changing administration, it might also be a good place for our incoming Gov. Dan Malloy to be.

Panel is Saturday, Dec. 18. from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Vibz Uptown, 3155 Main St. Speakers include Eric Crawford, Bob Farr, chairman of the Board of Pardons and Parole, Andrew Moseley, parole community manager, I. Charles Mathews, president of Northstar Center for Human Development and Lynn Ford, director of Taking back Your Life.For more information, contact dndhartford@aol.com.

Among his many skills -- belting out a little hallway diddy like no one's business. (My shaky video doesn't do him or his singing justice.) But here he is singing a birthday song he and his wife wrote. (It wasn't my birthday, but it sure felt that way when he sang to me.)

In March, Torres walked away from Connecticut Valley Hospital, never to be seen again.

I've written a few stories about his mother Margarita's search.

Read here, here and here. But neither the stories nor his mom's questions about her son has led to even a tip about his whereabouts.

When I read the story about the Naugatuck teen this afternoon, I realized it'd been a while since Margarita and I spoke.

I wondered if maybe she'd heard anything from her only son. Or if after all this time, he'd finally shown up like hospital officials said he would.

I shot her a brief email:

"Anything?" I wrote.

Her answer was just as brief: "Nothing."

I can't imagine what it's like for a parent not to know where their child is -- especially around the holidays.

And no matter how many times I've asked, I still don't understand why it seems like no authority -- not the hospital, not the cops -- is actively looking for Aaron, who has serious mental health issues.

Take a look at the picture and pass it and the stories on. Maybe someone has seen him? Maybe someone can help this mother finally get some answers about her son.

It's understandable that there's a process, however belated it may feel, to firing Officer Michael Koistinen, the off-duty police officer who struck and killed a teenager after an alleged night of drinking.

But now it's time to deal with the guy on top, Windsor Locks Police Chief John Suchocki.

There's plenty of blame to go around for the colossal mishandling of the fatal accident. But ultimately it was Chief Suchocki who took a guy into his department whose background probably shouldn't have made him eligible to be a mall cop, let alone a police officer with a gun.

During closing remarks in Steven Hayes' death penalty phase, one of his lawyers compared the unrelenting burden they said their guilt-ridden client was carrying around to Sisyphus, the mythological king condemned to roll a boulder up a hill for all eternity.

It seemed an odd comparison, even for a team that seems fond of inserting literary references into courtroom proceedings.

And it was especially odd because anyone even remotely familiar with the 2007 Cheshire home invasion knows that the person truly carrying around a merciless burden is the lone survivor of that horrific night, Dr. William Petit Jr.

The words started coming the day after her sister, Jennifer Hawke-Petit, and nieces Hayley and Michaela were brutally killed in the 2007 Cheshire home invasion.

They'd wake Cynthia Hawke-Renn (pictured at left) in the middle of the night. When she went to her family's old house boat to be alone with her thoughts, they'd come pouring out.

There, she'd fill page after page with remembrances of her older -- and only -- sister.

Those rememberances are some of the things Hawke-Renn included in her victim impact statement for the sentencing of Steven Hayes, the man who brutally killed her sister and nieces and who will be formally sentenced tomorrow in New Haven.